Article
Plant Sciences
Kyra D. Clark-Wolf, Philip E. Higuera, Kendra K. Mclauchlan, Bryan N. Shuman, Meredith C. Parish
Summary: Wildfires strongly influence forest ecosystem processes, and their resilience can be observed through lake-sediment records of past fire frequencies and accompanying biogeochemical and vegetation responses.
JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Cheima Barhoumi, Marianne Vogel, Lucas Dugerdil, Hanane Limani, Sebastien Joannin, Odile Peyron, Ahmed Adam Ali
Summary: The study reconstructed the fire history of Siberia during the Holocene, showing a trend of frequent and intense fires in the Early Holocene and lower magnitudes after 6500 cal. yr BP. The change in vegetation composition at the same time as indicated by pollen records also influenced the type of fires.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Huali Li, Jianjun Zhou, Man Zhang
Summary: Phosphorus (P) plays a critical role as a macronutrient and a pollutant in aquatic systems worldwide. The relationship between P and sediment is fundamental to understanding river biogeochemical processes. This study analyzed water samples from six different rivers in China with varying sediment concentrations and size distributions. The results showed that sediment has a consistent impact on P recirculation, with an overall trend of increasing sediment concentration diverging and then converging the range of total P concentration. This finding was further supported by P adsorption experiments. Moreover, the study demonstrated that sediment has a positive correlation with total P and a negative correlation with dissolved P, highlighting its role in moderating water quality and mitigating pollution and eutrophication in rivers. Additionally, damming of rivers was found to block P transport, altering the nourishment and contamination balance in river systems.
FRONTIERS IN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Forestry
Qian Shi, Caiming Shen, Hongwei Meng, Linpei Huang, Qifa Sun
Summary: Based on a study of the vegetation and fire history of Lake Haixihai in southwestern China over the past 1640 years, the results show that both climatic conditions and human activities have significantly influenced vegetation succession, forest fires, and soil erosion in the lake catchment.
Article
Geography, Physical
Jonathan Lesven, Milva Druguet Dayras, Romain Borne, Cecile C. Remy, Francois Gillet, Yves Bergeron, Andre Arsenault, Laurent Millet, Damien Rius
Summary: This study proposes a new automated method to quantify the number and size of macrocharcoal fragments using high-definition image capture and colorimetric analysis. The results show that this method is efficient in detecting charcoal particles and provides more accurate measurements compared to traditional visual inspection. It has been validated at both local and regional scales, making it a valuable tool for future paleoecological studies.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2022)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Rajesh Ranjan, Ashok Mishra
Summary: This study compared the impact of three calibration methods on model performance and parameter uncertainty using the SWAT model, finding that the sequential-simultaneous calibration method outperformed the other two methods in simulating streamflow and sediment load.
JOURNAL OF HYDROLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Ramesh Glueckler, Rongwei Geng, Lennart Grimm, Izabella Baisheva, Ulrike Herzschuh, Kathleen R. Stoof-Leichsenring, Stefan Kruse, Andrei Andreev, Luidmila Pestryakova, Elisabeth Dietze
Summary: This study uses sedimentary proxy records from Lake Satagay in Central Yakutia, Siberia to examine the long-term relationships between fire regime and forest structure. The results show that high amounts of burnt biomass were present during the Early Holocene, while the present-day low-severity surface fire regime has been in place since around 4,500 years ago. The study also reveals a shift in forest structure towards a mixed larch-dominated closed-canopy forest during the Mid-Holocene.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
Majoi N. Nascimento, Julian Beltran, Camille Bressers, Jona van Delft, Jordan Vermeulen, Sue de Ron, Annemiek Bruijn, Marco F. Raczka, S. Yoshi Maezumi, William D. Gosling, Mark B. Bush, Crystal N. H. Mcmichael
Summary: Fire has been a part of Earth's processes for millions of years, and its use has increased with human presence. This study compared charcoal amounts in freeze-dried and non-freeze-dried samples and found that freeze drying reduces the recoverable charcoal in paleoecological reconstructions. Sediments should not be freeze-dried prior to charcoal analysis, and fresh material should be collected if necessary.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Yunuen Temoltzin-Loranca, Erika Gobet, Boris Vanniere, Jacqueline F. N. van Leeuwen, Giulia Wienhues, Sonke Szidat, Colin Courtney-Mustaphi, Mary Kishe, Moritz Muschick, Ole Seehausen, Martin Grosjean, Willy Tinner
Summary: This study provides insights into the fire regime changes and long-term vegetation dynamics in Lake Victoria over the past 17,000 years by using 14C dating of sediment cores. The results suggest that climate and vegetation play significant roles in shaping the fire regime, which can inform ecosystem management and conservation strategies.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Georgia Majdalani, Nikos Koutsias, Ghaleb Faour, Jocelyne Adjizian-Gerard, Florent Mouillot
Summary: The study in Lebanon used high spatial resolution Landsat data and high temporal resolution VIIRS and MODIS hotspots to characterize the fire regime over the 2001-2020 period. The results showed that an estimated 2044 hectares burn annually, with no significant trend but with non climate-related fires affected by socio-political events during the year.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
James Terry, Kunal Singh, Michelle McKeown
Summary: This study examined the potential of Lake Tagimaucia as a paleoenvironmental archive through analyzing its sediment core. The results revealed a relationship between fire activity and sediment changes in the lake, and introduced a conceptual model to explain the influence of sedge peat swamps on lake sedimentation processes.
Article
Ecology
Boyd R. Wright, Boris Laffineur, Dominic Roye, Graeme Armstrong, Roderick J. Fensham
Summary: The study focused on arid Australian spinifex grasslands and found that traditional Aboriginal burning did not regulate fire size during extreme-high rainfall periods. While some observations noted small fires during periods of average or below-average rainfall, large-scale wildfires occurred during a high-rainfall period, supporting the importance of climatic factors.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Agnieszka Szczerba, Sergi Pla-Rabes, Wojciech Tylmann
Summary: Climate warming has a strong influence on aquatic processes and population dynamics of aquatic organisms. This study investigated Lake Zabinskie in northeast Poland to understand the relationships between meteorological conditions, physicochemical variables, and diatoms and chrysophyte cysts. The results showed direct and indirect influences of meteorological conditions on the lake's physicochemical conditions and biota, including changes in taxonomic composition and phenology. These findings highlight the potential impacts of ongoing climate change on eutrophic lakes.
FRESHWATER BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Tejas Bhagwat, Tobias Kuemmerle, Mahmood Soofi, Paul F. Donald, Norbert Hoelzel, Albert Salemgareev, Ingrid Stirnemann, Ruslan Urazaliyev, Matthias Baumann, Johannes Kamp
Summary: The increase in fire disturbance in post-Soviet Eurasian steppe has resulted in significant declines in bird abundance and changes in community assembly. Restoring wild herbivore populations and traditional domestic ungulate grazing systems are crucial for controlling wildfires and preventing further biodiversity loss.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Mark Constantine IV, Xiaohong Zhu, Haidee Cadd, Scott Mooney
Summary: The drivers of fire regimes before European occupation of Australia are debated, with some arguing for anthropogenic ignition dominance and others suggesting a climate or a combination of both factors. This study examines the 850-year history of fire regimes near Lake Werri Berri in southeast Australia. Macroscopic charcoal and FTIR spectroscopy were used to analyze the changes in fire regimes over time. The study finds little change during most of the 850-year period and no apparent change following the displacement of Indigenous peoples and the introduction of European agriculture and logging. However, since the mid-20th Century, there has been an increase in both burned area and fire severity, likely due to increased fuel load and connectivity resulting from extended periods of precipitation and intensified recreational land usage.
Article
Geography, Physical
Mara Deza-Araujo, Cesar Morales-Molino, Marco Conedera, Paul D. Henne, Patrik Krebs, Martin Hinz, Caroline Heitz, Albert Hafner, Willy Tinner
Summary: The reconstruction of human impact on vegetation and ecosystem change is crucial in palaeoecological studies. This study proposes a novel approach, the agricultural land use probability (LUP) index, to quantify human impact intensity on European ecosystems based on cultural indicator pollen types. The study demonstrates the potential of the LUP index for refining pollen-based land-use reconstructions and discusses the suitability of selected pollen types.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Geography, Physical
Ole Bennike, William Colgan, Lars Hedenas, Oliver Heiri, Geoffrey Lemdahl, Peter Wiberg-Larsen, Sofia Ribeiro, Roberto Pronzato, Renata Manconi, Anders A. Bjork
Summary: An organic-rich deposit was discovered at an elevation of 480 m above sea level at the Pingorsuit Glacier in North-West Greenland. The sediments contained remains of vascular plants, mosses, beetles, caddisflies, midges, bryozoans, sponges and other invertebrates. The fossils were deposited in a boreal environment with a mean July air temperature that was at least 9 degrees C higher than at present.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Jon Gardoki, Mario Morellon, Manel Leira, Francisco Javier Ezquerra, Juan Remondo, Willy Tinner, Maria Luisa Canales, Anouk van der Horst, Cesar Morales-Molino
Summary: A multi-proxy study of sediment cores from Lake Isoba in northwestern Iberia provides a detailed assessment of past hydrological and environmental dynamics, highlighting the sensitivity of the lake to climate variability and human impact.
JOURNAL OF PALEOLIMNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Fabian Rey, Colin J. Courtney Mustaphi, Sonke Szidat, Erika Gobet, Oliver Heiri, Willy Tinner
Summary: High-resolution chronologies are crucial for comparing palaeoenvironmental studies with high-precision historical, archaeological, or climatic data. The study presents an updated sediment chronology from Burgaschisee, a well-studied lake in Switzerland, using new radiocarbon samples and Bayesian age-depth modeling. The new chronology reveals 2 sigma uncertainties of only +/- 19 years for the entire record and allows for more accurate site-to-site comparisons. The study emphasizes the importance of a rigorous sampling strategy and the selection of suitable terrestrial plant material for radiocarbon dating.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Mariusz Galka, Julie Loisel, Klaus-Holger Knorr, Andrei-Cosmin Diaconu, Milena Obremska, Henning Teickner, Angelica Feurdean
Summary: This study reveals that peatland and forest ecosystems in the Bieszczady Mts. have been impacted by both climate change and human activity over the past 3750 years, with massive deforestation and erosion occurring. Drainage resulted in hydrological disturbances but did not prevent peat formation. The findings can provide reference conditions for the restoration of degraded mountain bogs and forests.
LAND DEGRADATION & DEVELOPMENT
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Yunuen Temoltzin-Loranca, Erika Gobet, Boris Vanniere, Jacqueline F. N. van Leeuwen, Giulia Wienhues, Sonke Szidat, Colin Courtney-Mustaphi, Mary Kishe, Moritz Muschick, Ole Seehausen, Martin Grosjean, Willy Tinner
Summary: This study provides insights into the fire regime changes and long-term vegetation dynamics in Lake Victoria over the past 17,000 years by using 14C dating of sediment cores. The results suggest that climate and vegetation play significant roles in shaping the fire regime, which can inform ecosystem management and conservation strategies.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Archaeology
Jakub Niebieszczanski, Piotr Kolaczek, Monika Karpinska-Kolaczek, Iwona Hildebrandt-Radke, Mariusz Galka, Jutta Kneisel
Summary: The archaeological microregion in Bruszczewo, located along the Samica River, was inhabited by unetice and Lusatian Urnfields culture people during the Bronze and Iron Ages. This study aimed to reconstruct the lake's development during the Bronze and Early Iron Ages and its transition into peatland. Using environmental archaeology methods, the researchers identified significant turning points in the lake's history, suggesting that local triggers rather than global climatic events were responsible for these changes.
ENVIRONMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Anna Walentowitz, Bernd Lenzner, Franz Essl, Nichola Strandberg, Alvaro Castilla-Beltran, Jose Maria Fernandez-Palacios, Svante Bjorck, Simon Connor, Simon G. Haberle, Karl Ljung, Matiu Prebble, Janet M. Wilmshurst, Cynthia A. Froyd, Erik J. de Boer, Lea de Nascimento, Mary E. Edwards, Janelle Stevenson, Carl Beierkuhnlein, Manuel J. Steinbauer, Sandra Nogue
Summary: Human-mediated changes in island vegetation are largely caused by the introduction and establishment of non-native species. However, data on past changes in non-native plant species abundance are scarce. Using fossil pollen data and botanical status information, we studied the changes in non-native plant abundance on 29 islands over the past 5000 years. Our findings reveal a proportional increase in non-native plant pollen in the last 1000 years and highlight the importance of considering the longer and more dynamic history of non-native plant introductions.
Article
Ecology
Felix Gugerli, Sabine Brodbeck, Bertalan Lendvay, Benjamin Dauphin, Francesca Bagnoli, Willem O. van Der Knaap, Willy Tinner, Maria Hohn, Giovanni G. Vendramin, Cesar Morales-Molino, Christoph Schworer
Summary: The study aimed to understand the historical climate shifts and their impact on Pinus cembra. The research combined genetic structure and palaeoecological findings to identify putative refugia and re-colonisation routes. The results suggest that P. cembra survived the Last Glacial Maximum in southern regions and expanded into its current range during the Late Glacial.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nare Ngoepe, Moritz Muschick, Mary A. Kishe, Salome Mwaiko, Yunuen Temoltzin-Loranca, Leighton King, Colin Courtney Mustaphi, Oliver Heiri, Giulia Wienhues, Hendrik Vogel, Maria Cuenca-Cambronero, Willy Tinner, Martin Grosjean, Blake Matthews, Ole Seehausen
Summary: Adaptive radiations play a crucial role in generating biodiversity, but the relative importance of species' ecological versatility and arrival order in determining which lineage radiates is still unclear. Through analyzing the fossil record of cichlid fishes in Lake Victoria, it was found that their ecological versatility was key to their persistence in new habitats, suggesting that it played a major role in adaptive radiation.
Article
Geography, Physical
Gonzalo Jimenez-Moreno, Oliver Heiri, Antonio Garcia-Alix, R. Scott Anderson, Francisco J. Jimenez-Espejo, Charo Lopez-Blanco, Laura Jimenez, Carmen Perez-Martinez, Marta Rodrigo-Gamiz, Alejandro Lopez-Aviles, Jon Camuera
Summary: Obtaining accurate temperature reconstructions from the past is crucial in understanding natural temperature changes and evaluating anthropogenic global warming. This study presents a detailed Holocene temperature reconstruction based on chironomid assemblages, revealing significant cooling during the Middle and Late Holocene. The current climate warming exceeds future projections, posing a threat to alpine environments and biodiversity.
QUATERNARY SCIENCE REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Mary Robles, Odile Peyron, Guillemette Menot, Elisabetta Brugiapaglia, Sabine Wulf, Oona Appelt, Marion Blache, Boris Vanniere, Lucas Dugerdil, Bruno Paura, Salome Ansanay-Alex, Amy Cromartie, Laurent Charlet, Stephane Guedron, Jacques-Louis de Beaulieu, Sebastien Joannin
Summary: This study reconstructs climate changes and their impacts at Lake Matese in southern Italy during the Late Glacial period using a multi-proxy approach. The results show a warm Bolling-Allerod and a cold Younger Dryas across Italy, with contrasting precipitation patterns.
CLIMATE OF THE PAST
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Colin J. Courtney-Mustaphi, Enrica Steiner, Stefanie von Fumetti, Oliver Heiri
Summary: Subfossil remains of aquatic invertebrates found in lacustrine sediments provide valuable information for paleoenvironmental studies. The lack of visual keys or documentation sources has limited the use of certain ecologically important invertebrate groups in paleoenvironmental research. This article presents a collection of digital photomicrographs of pre-identified aquatic invertebrate specimens, showcasing their preserved structures and providing insights for identification.
JOURNAL OF PALEOLIMNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Geography, Physical
Yunuen Temoltzin-Loranca, Erika Gobet, Boris Vanniere, Jacqueline F. N. van Leeuwen, Giulia Wienhues, Colin Courtney-Mustaphi, Mary Kishe, Moritz Muschick, Leighton King, Pavani Misra, Nare Ngoepe, Blake Matthews, Hendrik Vogel, Oliver Heiri, Ole Seehausen, Martin Grosjean, Willy Tinner
Summary: This paper presents a high-resolution palynological record from the Lake Victoria basin, showing the ecological successions and landscape transformations in tropical East Africa from 16,600 to 9,000 cal yr BP. The study demonstrates the dynamic response of African tropical ecosystems to long-term temperature and humidity variations during this period.
PALAEOGEOGRAPHY PALAEOCLIMATOLOGY PALAEOECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nare Ngoepe, Moritz Muschick, Mary A. Kishe, Salome Mwaiko, Yunuen Temoltzin-Loranca, Leighton King, Colin Courtney Mustaphi, Oliver Heiri, Giulia Wienhues, Hendrik Vogel, Maria Cuenca-Cambronero, Willy Tinner, Martin Grosjean, Blake Matthews, Ole Seehausen
Summary: This study presents a continuous fossil record showing how haplochromine cichlids came to dominate the fish fauna of Lake Victoria in Africa.